{"author_name":"Rusky","cat":"LD #29","comments":[],"epoch":1399419180,"likes":1,"metadata":{"p_key":"29920","p_author":"Rusky","p_authorkey":"7817","p_urlkey":"65386","p_title":"Postmortem: The Guy Who Fights Underground Monsters","p_cat":"LD #29","p_event":"LD29","p_time":"1399419180","p_likes":"1","p_comments":"0","p_status":"UPD5","us_key":"7817","us_name":"Rusky","us_username":"rusky","event_start":"1398384000","event_key":"22","event_name":"LD29"},"text":"

So I told everyone this was my first Ludum Dare, but it turns out it was my second. I had completely forgotten my last entry. Anyway, here’s the game:<\/p>\n

The Guy Who Fights Underground Monsters<\/a><\/p>\n

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What went well:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tools- I used Love2D<\/a> and\u00a0TileStudio<\/a> and it worked out great. I pulled a Lua exporter for TileStudio and the collision detection code from a previous open source project (https:\/\/github.com\/rpjohnst\/argo). Although it wasn’t the fastest setup I’ve ever had (Game Maker is usually faster) I was able to jump right into spriting and gameplay.<\/p>\n

Graphics- I’ve never been all that good at pixel art, but I really liked the results I got this time, at least for the character and monsters (the tiles are pretty rough). I focused on having animations for everything the character and monsters did, so they’d look more continuous and relatable.<\/p>\n

Combat Mechanics- This is the other thing I spent the most time on. I knew it would be essentially the only thing contributing to the fun in a game at this scale so I tried to make it feel good and respond predictably. I still have a bug where the character shoots across the level when he gets hit, but otherwise I think I succeeded.<\/p>\n

What went not-so-well:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Story- I didn’t have the full 48 hours to work on this game (pff real life why do I want that), so I didn’t really get to tie it into the theme very well. The character was originally a detective who would solve a mystery involving the charming underground monsters (see that? two<\/em> surfaces to go beneath), or at least be in that kind of 20s, film noire kind of environment. Maybe later.<\/p>\n

Content- My usual goal in short game competitions is to get the gameplay down and then cram in as much content as possible- levels, weapons, powerups, etc. But, I spent so much time on what I have now that I literally threw together a level in the last hour or so before I submitted. I feel like better level design and some extras could have made this feel like a real game rather than just the demo that it is now.<\/p>","time":"May 6th, 2014 6:33 pm","title":"Postmortem: The Guy Who Fights Underground Monsters"}